Devotion
by Fawn of the woods
Summary: Short story about the devotion between lieutenants and their captains. No pairing for this one. includes Byakuya, Jushiro, Shinsui, and Toshiro and their respective fukiotacho.


Disclaimer-i own nothing

**Devotion**

They were so screwed. Rangiku bumped her back against Renji's as they fought off the pile of Hollow. Nanao and Rukia weren't far off and she could see Yoruichi fighting hard. Most of these were Arrancar of a captains level or so. Rangiku gritted her teeth as she remembered that black cat jumping on her head to get her attention. Apparently Aizen had decided to use his zanpakuto to make various captains believe that the commander had ordered them to Hueco Mundo. Rangiku knew that there would be hell to pay when they returned for leaving without permission, but she really didn't care. Once the reports were confirmed they all went to Urahara to get their captains. Ichigo had gone ahead to find Toshiro, Byakuya, Jushiro, and Shunsui. They were following his reitatsu. Thus the current fight. They could feel their captains up on the plateau in various states of battle form, though no bankai's yet, so they were relaxed a little.

Just as they were about to renew their attack a very large, and bizarre reitatsu came from the plateau. Deciding they had had enough of this fight and wanted to get to their captains, they all released their shikai. They plowed through the hollows, not really caring if they killed them or not. The five shingamis plowed through the cannon fodder to reach the plateau. They stood on the very edge of the plateau and stopped in horror.

The five they had been looking for were in a powerful kido of some kind. The immense reitatsu had stopped the newcomers cold. Rangiku saw her captain finally drop to his knees under the pressure of the kido.

"Taicho!" Yoruichi grabbed her shoulder before she could charge in there.

"Matte! This kido is not an ordinary kido." Renji growled at her.

"No kidding!" He looked with worry as his captain joined the rest of the captains on the ground kneeling. He could see teeth clenched from here, whether in pain or annoyance, he wasn't sure. Yoruichi placed her hand inside the field slightly.

"It is a power unique to that Arrancar. I believe it forces shinigami to bear their own most powerful reitatsu." Rukia looked at her.

"For the captains, that would be their Bankai." Yoruichi nodded. When your bankai was active it increased its wielder's power by a factor of ten at least. But when it wasn't released, the shinigami's power was substantially lower. None of the captains had released their bankai. In fact, except for Ichigo, they hadn't even released their shikai. The power of their own reitatsu was literally crushing them. Assuming the lower level arrancar didn't get to them first, of course. There was a mass of the charging the incapacitated shinigami.

"So activate your shikai or bankai before you go!" Nanao replied quite logically as she drew her zanpakuto and released it again. Rangiku nodded and released her own. Yoruichi jumped ahead of them, but she had been a captain, thus they assumed she knew what she was doing. Rukia released hers and followed, glancing at Renji.

Renji gritted his teeth as he looked at his captain. He called Zabimaru to Bankai and nodded to Rukia to show that she should tend to her captain. They all dashed into the field and were immediately weighed down by the kido. Yoruichi landed next to each and handed them a long knife or short sword. Their zanpakutos would be of little use until this barrier was lifted.

Ukitake Jushiro struggled to rise as he saw the death coming towards his best friend. He ignored that for himself, having gotten used to looking death in the eye for a long time, what with his illness. He gapsed out his friend's name as he reached for him. He saw Shinsui likewise reach for him back. Both friends were desparate to help the other.

Ichigo growled in his throat as he saw the attack coming his way. He couldn't fight this overwhelming reitatsu though. He didn't understand how Aizen had labeled this Arrancar numer 45 if it had this much reitatsu. He swore as he pushed himself to rise again.

Toshiro struggled to rise even as he saw Ichigo doing the same thing. He could handle the reitatsu if he could just get enough breath to form his bankai. Horinmaru would help shield him with its own reitatsu. He pushed and drove as he looked at the attackers.

Byakuya glared at the attacking arrancar as he went through his choices. There were none. He had already known that but he still tried. He saw the knife heading for his face when it was grabbed by a very familiar hand.

"Oi!I think you are confused as to who is your opponent!" Byakuya looked up at his lieutenant in amazement as the red-head shoved the arrancar away. He groaned slightly as he started to fall forward. He was prepared the hit the ground, except it never came. Instead He felt soft fur and hard wood support him in the form of Renji's bankai. He looked at his fukotaicho in amazement as he charged the arrancar barehanded.

Jushiro started when Nanao and Rukia appeared in front of him and his best friend. He saw Shinsui struggle to rise and help his secret love without success. Likewise, Jushiro cried out to Rukia when he saw her hand bereft her zanpakuto.

"Kuchiki-san! Get away!" He saw her turn towards him slightly.

"Iie, Please, let me fight, Taicho!" Her words, so resembling Kaien's made Jushiro looked at her in surprise. He could here her low voice from even this far away. "Gomen, I still have not learned enough. I do not know if this battle is to protect life or to protect pride. Demo, I will win regardless. Onegai, Taicho, I beg of you. Let me go!" His eyes widened at the force as even she recognized the words she was saying to her captain. Kaien Shiba had left an imprint on her she couldn't ever erase. She had made her peace with his family, with his memory, now she was finally ready to make peace with her captain, and in doing so, with her self. Jushiro finally bowed to the inevitable.

"Aa" She smiled slightly and began to use kido to shoot down the closer opponents.

Ichigo growled as Yoruichi cut down the opponents near him and began to make her way towards the other captains.

"Oi! Go help them! I'm not that weak to fall to the likes of these!" She smirked at him.

"Even with this kido?" Her stance grew serious. "Anyway, they must do this. My immediate help would be unwanted. Besides, I've grown rather fond of rescuing you" She ruffled his head as he screeched at her.

Toshiro was using the time Rangiku bought to try ans rise and help her. He had seen her already take some hits, superflicial as they were, and it was gnawing at him that he was the reason she was fighting here to begin with.

"Taicho, don't worry. I got this! Ne?" Her smile never left as she plowed through the ones she could, fought hard the ones she couldn't. Toshiro refused to back down as he saw a new, stronger wave come at them. The leaders of this wave threw a shower of sharp, deadly knives in the captains direction.

Rukia, Yoruichi and Nanao simply used Kido against the new attack. Rangiku was still next to her captain, so she charged them and knocked most out of the air. The rest she blasted with a shaky kido.

Renji wasn't near his captain. At least not close enough to give him a lot of time to think. Byakuya saw that even with Renji's bankai around him, which couldn't move, he was still going to die, or at least be seriously injured. He gritted his teeth as he tried to position himself in the best possible manner for the hits.

His eyes widen as the blood splashed on his face. He could feel his limbs trembling as he looked up at his fukiotaicho. Renji's chest and legs were now peppered with knives as he had taken the entire force of the attack.

"RENJI!" Rukia's call from across the field echoed in Byakuya's ears as he choked out one word.

"Renji..." Yoruichi dealt with the opponent heading their way as Renji coughed out blood and attempted to regain his stance. Across the plateau they heard the arrancar cackling.

"You think you can defeat me? You are lieutenants! Weak! You have little power and I have much!" Renji glared at him as Yoruichi stepped forward slightly.

"You seem to be mistaken." Rukia took her stance for a kido blast. She was not a lieutenant, but in the last few weeks, she had started taking onthe responsibilities of one in her squad.

"We are not lieutenants because we are weaker than our taichos." Rangiku nodded in her stance and continued.

"We are lieutenants because we compliment our taicho. Where they are harsh, we offer compromise." Nanao adjusted her glasses.

"We are reason when they are passion. We are their security and hold ourselves responsible." Renji growled next.

"We defend our Taihco's ideals and we communicate them to our squad." Rukia took up the dialogue.

"We take the weight off our Taicho when we can, and be there to help them when we can't." Rangiku grimaced.

"We allow our Taicho their freedom so they can do their job with courage!" Nanao smiled slightly.

"We catch our taicho when they start to falter then hold tall and proud beside them as they stand." Renji breathed shakily as he stood ready to fight again.

"We respect and admire our taicho, not for what they can do, but for what they are willing to do." Yoruichi smiled as the other shinigami all completed together.

"We will stand by our taicho, and you shall not remove us!" The fukiotaicho's creed rang in the air as they said it. It was an agreement between fukiotaichos. They made this pledge to themselves and to their fellow fukiotaichos.

The arrancar just laughed at their determination. He began shouting, through the laughter, how ridiculous this was. They were ignoring him for the most part.

"What should be our next step? There's still a lot of them." Renji looked at the laughing maniac a moment.

"Something I remember learning about fighting against any type of kido. When in doubt, shot the source." Yoruichi nodded. She looked at Rukia.

"Kuchiki, you are the best at kido of us." Rukia started to stutter at this, "You need to hit him hard. I sense very little reitatsu from him personally. I will double up with the red pineapple here and Rangiku, and cover these guys. Nanao, if you could cover Rukia, that would be good. The more of the spell you say the stronger the hit." Rukia nodded. Both girls leaped away as they split. Rukia spared a glance for both her brother and her taicho. Byakuya had eyes on Renji, who was slightly fuming at Yoruichi, but Jushiro was watching Rukia feverishly. She smiled slightly and gave him a thumbs up even as Nanao nodded to his best friend. Both watched helplessly as their subordinates leaped into danger.

Rangiku covered her captain and extended to Shinsui and was carefully trying to avoid being slashed to ribbons. She got caught hard in the thigh once, earning a frantic scream from her Taicho, but ignored it in favor of making sure her head remained attached to her body. Toshiro was indeed franatic. He had known about the creed, having heard from a drunken Rangiku, but he didn't think they would take it this far. He threw himself against the reitatsu as he saw his fukiotacho sliced again and again.

Jushiro was only vaguely aware of Yoruichi as she defended him and Ichigo, who was simply annoyed. He was watching Rukia like a hawk. She was starting to get some injuries as the two women drew closer to the arrancar leader person.

Byakuya strained against his immobility as he saw Renji take more hits. He couldn't do more than shift yet. He watched his sister fly towards her goal. He knew she would use the same technique he would have and despite her injuries, she was being protected, albeit not perfectly, but she wasn't in the danger Renji was in. He pulled against the force as he saw Renji stumble under the worst of the lot. They were attacking him in earnest, being the most injured and the strongest. Apparently they didn't know Yoruichi.

Rukia saw them all leap at her and Nanao out of the corner of her eye, but ignored them in favor of completing the kido and causing blue fire to rain down on her opponent.

The instant the fire hit the kido dissipated. All the captains leaped into action at this turn of events.

Jushiro called his shikai and was at Rukia before she hit the ground. He fended off the attacker with Shinsui who was cradling a bleeding Nanao in his arms and radiating fury. Jushiro turned to Rukia in concern but determined that her injuries were only a slash to her side and that she could stand on her own.

Ichigo was swiping out everyone within range and then some, super pissed that not only had he been caught but needing to be rescued. He raced through the enemies, nodding to Yoruichi as she raced towards the two from the sixth division.

Byakuya had released his shikai immediately upon the kido lifting and shiponed to Renji's side in time to catch him as he stumbled. His bankai disappeared as Renji fell backwards into his captain's grasp. Byakuya spared a glance in Rukia's direction before he looked back at his fukiotaicho. Renji had been with him as a fukiotaicho for years and he had never known the depths to which he held the other. Yoruichi appeared next to him instantly and began looking over him. Byakuya could tell Renji's reitatsu was low. It flickered as if it would go out. Byakuya looked at Yoruichi in trepidation. She was frowning, not good. She started a short healing kido with little effect.

"He simply doesn't have enough reitatsu left for me to work with." She was biting her bottom lip. Byakuya looked at him.

"Use mine." She looked at him in astonishment. To use another reitatsu to heal would bind them, it was usually only done between spouses or best friends like Jushiro and Shinsui. She knew Byakuya had never offered this before. She nodded. Byakuya swallowed his fukiotaicho in his reitatsu. He felt Yoruichi guide it through the healing kido as he watched his lieutenant's wound start to heal.

Toshiro had torn through a dozen opponents to reach his fukiotaicho. He grabbed a sword as it headed for her arm. She was lying on the ground trying to avoid all the weapons and various feet she could. Her opponents were stabbing down on her arms and legs even as they aimed for her head. Toshiro blasted them all away and surrounded them in his ice shield. He leaned over Rangiku.

"Masumoto. Masumoto! Are you alright?" She stood only to crash to her knees again.

"Sure taicho, just tired. They kind of keep coming." Toshiro looked at her and nodded.

"Aa, but Ichigo seems intent on attacking their leader. That should help some." He placed an arm around her waist and helped her stand. He hated that she was hurt because of him. He glared at the attackers but she came first. He felt herlean into him.

"Gomen Taicho, you don't need to worry about me." Toshiro looked at her in annoyance.

"I'm your captain. Its my job." She smiled slightly through her panting.

"Hai, like it was my job to protect you." He grimaced and held her close as she tried to regain her strength. He wasn't moving. All the things they had said about their jobs went both ways as far as he was concerned.

Shinsui held Nanao tight as he tore through the enemy. He glanced down at her. He had often wondered if he was some sort of pedophile, what with falling for a woman he had met when she was 5. He felt her hands grip the front of his kimono as he held her close. He wouldn't loose her like he did Lisa.

After Ichigo had killed the leader, most of the hollow retreated. Byakuya continued to surround Renji in his reitatsu as Yoruichi healed Rangiku. Ichigo glanced at them before walking over to Rukia. She was next to Jushiro as he tried to help Nanao convince Shinsui to let go of her.

"OI, Rukia! You alright?" She looked at him a moment. She had been holding herself from reacting to her injury. It really was deep and she didn't know how much longer she could keep up this facade. She didn't want to worry her taicho, but when Ichigo called her name, she turned towards him and pulled at her injury. With a groan of pain she felt the world spin as she finally lost consciousness. She felt Ichigo catch her as she collapsed. She smiled in comfort as he picked her up.

"We should return to Seireitai." Nanao had finally succeeded in pulling herself free of Shinsui. Yoruichi couldn't agree more. She saw Byakuya pick Renji up and Rangiku lean on Toshiro. She opened the portal to Kisuke's shop and they all stepped through.

* * *

Hi, all. Random on lieutenants and their captains. Mostly focus was supposed to be Byakuya and Renji.

This will eventually have a sequel with romance, but this one stands

proofed-sequel up: Chances


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